A Change for All Un Cambio para todos

A Change for All

What can New Yorkers do to push for healthier air and a better future for our children?

As a pediatrician trained in environmental health and as a mother, I worry about the impact of climate change on children’s health. Climate change is not a partisan issue.

It is our reality and it threatens the health and well-being of all members of society, especially children.

President Trump’s decision earlier this year to withdraw from the Paris Agreement will harm communities’ health and the environment.

His decision makes local and state action even more essential.

Ground-level ozone is expected to become worse.

Climate change is already making many health-related issues worse. One such threat is worsening air pollution, particularly ground-level ozone, a component of smog. Ground-level ozone is created when pollution from tailpipes and power plants react with sunlight and heat to create the ozone. The hotter the day, the more ozone is formed. Unfortunately, New York City already doesn’t fare well for ozone pollution. The American Lung Association’s 2017 “State of the Air Report” gave failing grades for three of the city’s five boroughs for high ozone days.

As climate change continues, ground-level ozone is expected to become worse, harming more children. High levels of ozone can lead to breathing problems for everyone, but especially those with asthma. People with asthma are the first to feel the effects of poor air quality: more frequent and worsening asthma attacks, emergency room visits and hospitalizations. Asthma is one of the biggest reasons children miss days from school.

The burden of asthma does not affect all of the city’s children equally. Children from low income neighborhoods are more likely to have been diagnosed with asthma than children in higher income neighborhoods.

Some of the city’s highest asthma rates are in Hunts Point (Bronx) and East Harlem (Manhattan).

In addition to the tremendous toll that asthma takes on the quality of life of children and their caregivers, the social and economic costs of asthma are far-reaching for New York. The State Department of Health estimated in 2014 the annual overall cost of asthma in New York at 1.3 billion dollars.

Some good news—New York has seen recent declines in overall asthma deaths, hospitalizations and asthma prevalence among children in the Medicaid program. Further progress remains essential.

More good news—New York has strong leadership from many of its elected officials on climate change and clean air policies.

New York has begun to invest in cleaner, healthier energy sources to reduce air pollutants. More needs to be done and the time is urgent, especially as President Trump and many members of Congress are trying to dismantle federal protections for air quality and climate change.

Asthma can cause children to miss school.

So what can we do, as concerned citizens, to continue the push for cleaner energy, healthier air, and a better future for our children?

One action we can take is to call on our elected leaders in New York to strengthen the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a multistate program intended to cap and reduce carbon dioxide emissions responsible for climate change. Since 2008, RGGI has aided in reductions in carbon emissions and air pollutants from large fossil-fuel fired power plants in New York and throughout the Northeast. As of 2014, it has been estimated that the implementation of RGGI has led to significant reductions in adverse health consequences (fewer heart attacks and lower adult mortality), providing New York with over $800 million in health savings.

While these gains are promising, they are not enough.

As of now, RGGI reduces the carbon cap by 2.5% each year. However, RGGI can be made stronger by reducing the annual carbon cap to 5%. A study by the Acadia Center calculated that shifting the cap to a 5% annual carbon reduction will provide more than $2 billion in health benefits through 2030, which is more than double the benefits that would be achieved by continuing the 2.5% annual reduction.

The President has called climate change a “hoax.”

Along with shifting the carbon cap, community funds earned through RGGI should be heavily invested in communities disproportionately impacted by the harmful health effects of air pollution and climate change. By engaging elected officials, community leaders and our neighbors, we can ensure that RGGI is made as strong as it needs to be, and that its benefits are shared equitably.

Dr. Lauren Zajac is a pediatrician in New York City, a member of the National Board of Directors for Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), and a member of PSR-New York Chapter. For more information, please visit www.psr.org.